


Exchange Student

by c0matoast



Category: Banana Fish (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Foreign Exchange Student, Friends to Lovers, Highschool AU, How Do I Tag, Implied/Referenced Homophobia, Language Barrier, M/M, Misunderstandings, Mutual Pining, Period-Typical Homophobia, Senior year, Slow Burn, Wrote this during class, highschool, not rly mentioned but it’s the 80s, shorter is a stoner, still updating
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-11
Updated: 2021-02-25
Packaged: 2021-03-17 18:40:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 15,059
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29355114
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/c0matoast/pseuds/c0matoast
Summary: After coming to America as a part of a foreign exchange program, Eiji finds himself drawn to a mysterious boy in his class, and having only one year in America, tries to make this year his best one yet.————————————ORHappy(ish) highschool AU where Eiji and Ash pine after each other an unbearable amount.
Relationships: Ash Lynx/Okumura Eiji
Comments: 34
Kudos: 92





	1. Welcome to America!

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guysssssss  
> so i know i usually write sappy one shots- but i decided to challenge myself a bit with writing a longer story. i’m honestly pretty proud of this, and i have big plans for where the story is going to go.  
> Enjoy!~

Eiji was already regretting that choice he made in his old school’s counselor's office. He remembered signing the paperwork, agreeing to dedicate his next year of education to being an exchange student in America. Now as he sat on the shuttle leaving the airport in NYC, he was already having doubts. First off, he barely understood anything. Despite the fact he was a top English student at his school, he struggled to pick up on anything anyone was saying, or anything the English signs said. Maybe it was the nerves, or the jetlag, but he felt like everyone was speaking in gibberish.

Secondly, he looked quite different than everyone around him. He had always been told America was a “melting pot”, but as he looked around the shuttle he couldn’t find anyone who looked like him.

He checked the notes he had written down for himself on what to do.

  1. Get off the plane, and get baggage.
  2. Get on shuttle WX5, and stay on it until you get to the end of the line.
  3. Find the Lobo family, and go to them.
  4. Get into the car with them, and go to your new house.



It seemed easy enough, and as he felt the shuttle come to a halt, a voice said something along the lines of “blah blah last stop,” Eiji grabbed his bags and quickly stepped out of the shuttle.

As he looked around the airport deck, it was filled with people. Everyone was going somewhere, and the crowd slowly filled Eiji with an underlying anxiety. As he scanned through the masses of people, something caught his eye. A family with blonde hair that consisted of a mother, a father, and a little boy, stood still in the middle of the deck holding a sign with big bubble letters and colorful drawings that said, “Welcome Home Eiji!”

They seemed to also be looking for him, their faces sweeping back and forth across the waves of people, so Eiji rolled his suitcase forward, weaving around the adults who seemed like they had places to be. The mother was the first to see him, her face lighting up as she stepped forward with her arm outstretched. She called out with an angelic voice, “Eiji! Come here!” 

Eiji understood her. Her calm voice was like a beacon in a sea of confusion. He picked up his pace and stood in front of her, reaching his own hand out to shake hers.

“It’s nice to meet you, Ms. Lobo!” He said, just like he had practiced. She took his hand with both of hers, excitedly shaking it up and down, “Please, just call me Jessica!” She said with a smile.

The Father and their son stepped up to Eiji as well, welcoming him with beaming faces. The husband extended his hand to Eiji. “Call me Max, and this little guy is Michael,” he said while they shook hands. 

“How are you enjoying America so far?” Jessica asked while taking Eiji’s bags and beginning to walk towards the door to the parking garage.

“It’s so cool, but scary,” Eiji said, following her. He was still struggling to put the right words together in the forgien language. 

“Well I’m sure you’ll settle in nicely,” Max said from behind Eiji.

The car ride away from the airport was long, but fascinating. Eiji has never been outside of Japan, and everything was very different. As they drove through New York City to get to the more suburban areas of the state, Eiji’s eyes wandered on every building in person. He surprised himself with how many signs he could understand, but nevertheless he was still in the dark with most of the larger words. 

But, soon the winding streets and towering buildings turned into green lawns and smaller homes. And, sooner or later the family turned down a peaceful street and pulled into the driveway of a little white house. Eiji opened the car door and stretched his legs, while Max got his suitcases out of the back of the car. 

Jessica went to the front door with her keys, motioning for Eiji to follow her. He stepped onto the porch of the house, the rickety wood creaking beneath his sneakers. The porch is sparsely decorated, only a rocking chair, a welcome mat, and a cross hanging in the middle of the red door. 

As Jessica turned the key and opened the door, Eiji was met with a slightly smaller than average home. Nothing particularly big stood out in it. There were dark hardwood floors, and the walls were covered in a beige paint. It was nothing like his home back in Japan, but it was just as he was expecting out of an American home. 

“Welcome to the Lobo house!” Jessica said, slipping her shoes off at the door. Eiji followed suit, taking his converse off as well. “Let me give you a tour.” She said, grabbing Eiji by the wrist as he barely managed to squeak out an affirmation.

She pulled him along through the house, showing him the living room, the kitchen, the office, the backyard, the bathroom, and finally ending in the bedroom right beside Michael’s. It was barren aside from the bed frame and dresser. “This will be your room!” She said. “Exciting- right? A room all to yourself.” 

It was at that moment Max came into the door frame holding Eiji’s suitcases while panting like a wet dog, mumbling something along the lines of “how much stuff can one teenage boy pack?” He slid the suitcases into Eiji’s new room. “Well let you get settled in, just holler if you need us.” Jessica said, closing the door behind her as she finished her sentence. 

And Eiji is alone. He has 3 suitcases of stuff from home, so he gets to work. First, the clothing suitcase. He takes his clothes and unloads them into the dresser, sorting them by type of clothes and color, trying to stay even a little organized. Then, his “essentials” suitcases. This one had his bedsheets, shampoo, toothbrush, etc. And finally, the fun stuff. This is where he packed his posters, his Tamagotchi, and his camera.

After an hour or two, his room is finished. It's nothing too complicated, but it’s his. The last thing he has to do is pin-up his calendar, in which he has one particular date circled. Tomorrow, August 26 he will start his first day in American school.

He goes downstairs, and has a peaceful dinner with the Lobo family, and plays with Michael a little bit. Eiji has always had a way with young kids. They tried to have some casual conversation, and succeeded in a sense, but Eiji kept having to look up words to understand what they were saying. 

The things he did learn were that Max and Jessica had been married for seven years, that Michael was 6 years old, and that Max served in the military before they were married. But, nevertheless the evening had come to an end and Eiji was already very tired from the long plane ride. So, he went to sleep around 9:00, ready for his first day of American school the next day.

  
  


Eiji awoke to the sound of an alarm clock clanging in his ear. As his eyes fluttered open, it took him a moment to remember that he was no longer in Japan. He looked around his new room to remind himself of his new setting, before sitting up and stretching out his back. It was around 7:00AM, and he had school today.

American schools are very different from schools in Japan. First off, there were no uniforms. So, the first thing Eiji did was pick out his best looking outfit. Next, you ride a bus to school, instead of walking or getting on a tram. Eiji knew the bus came in around 15 minutes, so we had a bit of time to get himself ready still. So, he took his time to do all the boring morning hygiene stuff. He brushed his teeth, styled his hair, put on cologne, and posed in the mirror trying to make himself feel cool.

His last step in his morning routine was to eat. As he left his room and turned down the hallway into the kitchen, he could already smell cooked food. He saw Max and Jessica sitting at the table waiting for him, a plate of toast and eggs already set out. Max looked up from his newspaper as Eiji walked in and gave him a light smile.

“Ready for your first day, kid?” Max asked as Eiji sat down and started eating.

Eiji put his hand over his mouth, and tried to answer. But between his accent and the food in his mouth, his response wasn’t far from ununderstandable. 

Jessica seemed to nod along as if she understood, and in an attempt to keep conversation going she said, “Well, we got a bag with school supplies in it, so you should be fine. Just try to make friends, and don’t stress yourself out too much.” She pulled up a brown backpack that seemed to be stuffed with notebooks, pens, binders, etc, and she awkwardly passed it over the kitchen table to Eiji. 

“Now, you don’t wanna miss the bus, better get going kiddo.” Max said. Eiji responded with a nod, quickly taking the final bite of his breakfast before grabbing the backpack, rushing to the front door, sliding on his red converse, and walking outside, waving goodbye to the Lobo family as he did. 

He had a vague idea of where the bus would pick him up, so he started off in that direction. This American neighborhood was very different to his home in Japan. There was almost nobody outside, whereas in Japan the city would already be bustling by this time. But, the only person he saw was a guy laying in the grass beside the bus-stop sign.

Now this guy was very different to what Eiji was used to. He wore bright, baggy clothes, had a couple of piercings in his face, and had a bright purple mohawk. He looked older than Eiji, but not by much. He did have a backpack, so Eiji could assume that he was a highschool student. 

Eiji stood awkward beside the guy in the grass, unsure if he was awake or not because he had sunglasses covering his eyes. So Eiji avoided looking at him. In Japan, Eiji was told that people with piercings and colored hair were bad news, so the last thing he wanted to do was provoke this guy. 

It was painfully awkward. The two boys beside each other in complete silence. Eiji’s whole body was tense as he waited for the bus to arrive and finally put an end to this social disaster.

“I don’t recognize you. Are you new?” Eiji suddenly heard from below him. Ah. So the mohawk guy wasn’t asleep.

“Kind of, I am an exchange student. From Japan.” Eiji said, trying his best to sound casual. 

“Japan? Man, that's so far. The farthest I’ve ever been away from home was when I went to Maine for a family reunion.” Mohawk Guy sputtered out, adjusting himself so he was now laying back on his forearms. 

He extended his hand to Eiji, letting his sunglasses slide down his nose to reveal his eyes. “Call me Shorter.” He said with an unexpectedly friendly smile. Eiji took his hand and shook it in response, and upon closer inspection he noted the edges of Shorter’s eyes were tinted red- a clear sign of marijuana use.

“I’m Eiji.” He responded. 

“Ay Jay? That's a cool name.” Shorter said, putting his hand in his pocket and standing up.

“Eh? No, it's Eiji. Like uh,” Eiji stuttered for a moment, “E-I-J-I.” 

Shorter nodded along. “Eiji, huh?” He said. “Do you smoke?”

“I’ve never smoked.”

“Never?”

“Never.”

“Do you want to?”

“Not really.”

“Suit yourself.”

The boys carried on this new conversation until the bus rounded the corner, and Shorter bounded on like he had done it every day of his life. Eiji was more cautious though. As he walked down the bus, he noticed a plethora of different people. 

Kids dressed in all black with scary makeup. He immediately walked by them. Someone who was asleep, could be a safe option for a seatmate, but then he heard a voice call, “Oi! Eiji! Come sit in the back!” 

Shorter was standing on the seat looking right at him, so Eiji walked all the way down the line and parked himself in the seat beside Shorter. 

The bus ride was about 15 minutes, and Eiji just let Shorter talk for most of the ride. And by god, did he talk. A couple other other kids hopped on along the ride and started casual conversation, and Eiji butted in every once in a while, but he remained relatively in the background for most of the ride.

Now was the hard part. The actual schooling. As they all got off the bus, Shorter ran off to talk to someone in the front lawn of the school, and everyone else dispersed off into their friend groups. Considering it was his first day, Eiji decided to start looking for his classroom considering it might take him a while to find it.

After a while of wandering the halls and running into people on accident, he finally found the class he was looking for. As he peaked in the room, there was already a half-full class in their seats, and kids trailing in every second. Then, he heard the bell.

So, he takes a deep breath and steps inside. Nobody turns to him. In fact, it seems like almost no one cares. They are all still chatting in their little groups. Unsure of where he was supposed to sit, he leaned up against the wall, and waited for the teacher.

Not even a minute passed until the classroom door swung open, and a tall- brown haired man entered. He was muscularly built, wearing a trench coat and slacks. He walked to the desk at the front of the room, setting his briefcase down and writing his name in big loopy writing on the chalkboard.

_ Mr. Blanca. _

He spun around to face the class, catching Eiji in his side view, stopping himself to meet his eyes. “Ah, you must be that new exchange student i was told about.”

Eiji nodded, trying not to look awkward as he could feel all of the classes’ eyes on him. 

“Well, don’t be shy, Introduce yourself.” Blanca said, motioning for Eiji to stand in front of the class, front and center. “We haven’t got all day.”

Eiji took the hint, pushing himself off of the wall he was leaning on and standing in front of the class. He finally got a chance to actually look over the class. It looked like a standard American school. Most students were sitting at attention, but the one that caught Eiji’s eye was a tuffle of shiny blonde hair asleep in the back row, seemingly uncaring about the fact they were at school. 

Eiji cleared his throat, and did his best to introduce himself with as clear of speech as possible. It was a standard introduction, he said his name, age, that he was from Japan, and that he liked photography. Once he was done, the class let out a monotone, “Nice to meet you, Eiji.” And Blanca sent him to his seat.

The seat right next to that tuffle of blonde hair. As he sat down, his eyes couldn’t help but linger on the mysterious kid. But as he seemed to stare for upwards of 20 seconds, suddenly the head turned, and Eiji was met with a glaring emerald-green eye, clearing wanting to be left alone. So, Eiji looked away, continuing to unpack his things and scan the classroom.

The overhead speakers clicked on after a few minutes, and an overenthusiastic voice echoed through the classroom.

“Gooooooood Morning Riverbank High! It is a beautiful monday morning and i hope you are all ready for the new week!”

The class let out a groan.

“Now if i could ask all students to stand for the Pledge of Allegiance.”

_ “The What?” _ Eiji thought to himself, then the horor hit him. Every student in the room, including the previously presumed asleep blonde-haired boy stood and faced the front of the room, as if they were under some sort of mind control. They all placed their hands over their chests, and began to monotonously chant some sort of poem together. 

Eiji was by all means terrified. As he looked across the sea of kids however, his eyes were once again drawn back to the blonde-haired boy. He stood nonchalantly, not bothering to chant along with the other kids. His hair fell ever so slightly over his face, framing his jawline and drawing interest to his face- putting focus onto his jade-green eyes. He was wearing some old denim pants,and a jacket that was clearly a size too big for him but it somehow fit him in a way that contrasted with his slender physique and created an all-together satisfying silhouette. 

The class ended their mantra with a line about liberty or something, and the students all settled back into their seats, engaging in casual chatter as the man on the announcements started talking about the clubs meeting today. The blonde guy had leaned back in his chair with his arms crossed now, still not talking to anyone, and his leg bouncing with impatience. Eiji noted that he didn’t seem to have any notebooks, pencils, or even a backpack. 

As the announcements came to a close, Mr. Blanca cleared his throat and the class shut up pretty quickly. “We are going to pick up where you all left off last year. So, take out your math notebooks, and turn to page 56. Work through question 16 with someone beside you, and ask me if you need any help.” 

Kids quickly began digging through their bags, pulling out a textbook they all seemed to own. Just as Eiji was about to ask what he was supposed to do a voice from beside him gave guidance. 

“The textbooks are at the front of the room.”

The blonde boy had talked to him. Eiji processed what he said for a moment, before rushing out a quick “Thank you-” and standing to get himself a book. Grabbing the textbook off of a shelf by Mr. Blanca’s desk, he went back to his seat and opened to page 56. He had a vague idea of what the problems were, so he decided to just work on his own.

The blonde-boy had already leaned his head back again, once again dozing off in his seat. 

Eiji was about half way down the page, when he got to a problem he was absolutely stuck on. He stared at the paper, twirling his pencil in his hand, and holding his breath trying to wrap his brain around the equation. After a minute of nothing, he let out a frustrated sigh. 

Eiji raised his hand, calling Mr. Blanca over to him. As Blanca arrived, he slapped his hand on the blonde-boy’s desk, waking him up. “Aslan, help your partner. And stop sleeping in my class.”

“My name’s Ash.” He responded, stretching. 

“Fine,  _ Ash,  _ stop sleeping in my class, and help the new kid.” Blanca said. 

“Sure.”

Ash got to his feet, and walked across the aisle to Eiji’s desk, and Blanca went back to the front of the room. He leaned over, inspecting the page for what Eiji was doing.

After a moment of Eiji awkwardly sitting there, and Ash looking at the textbook page in silence, he put his hand in Eiji’s direction. “Gimme your pencil.”

Eiji obliged, handing over his pencil and watching Ash scribble a couple things on the page. After he finished writing, he set the pencil down, and sat back in his own seat. “You just forgot to multiply the denominators. Rookie mistake.”

Ash let his head lean back again, showing he was done with this conversation. Eiji didn’t push him to answer any more questions, and instead he attempted to work through the rest of the textbook problems. 

The class was torturous for Eiji. At least in math they were using the same symbols and whatnot, so Eiji could follow along at least a little bit, but once they moved on to other subjects, he quickly got lost. The teacher talked too fast, and used words he had never heard before. Not to mention, the class was already in the middle of a unit.

He really tried his best, but his notes by the middle of the day were unintelligible from chicken scratch. But, his savior came with the sound of the lunch bell ringing. The class stood up, and exited the classroom. Now this was something he had heard of. American schools didn’t eat lunch in the classrooms, they ate in the cafeteria. 

So, he stood up and followed the crowd to the cafeteria. It was very intimidating. The room was nearly packed with screaming children. Everything from AP students cramming at a table in the corner, to a group of Athletic guys throwing a ball across the room back and forth to each other. Eiji vigorously scanned the crowd for a familiar face. 

That's when he saw a diamond in the rough. Ash and Shorter, sitting at a table together, surrounded by a couple other kids of varying size and appearance. Ash’s legs were up on the table, and he was leaning on the back legs of the chair. Eiji made a beeline for them, having to duck under and dodge a few people on his way there. He stood at the last empty chair at the round lunch table, and the crowd looked up at him.

Ash’s face, which did have a shit-eating grin just a moment ago, turned to a look of confusion. Eiji flung his backpack off his shoulder, and held it in his hand, holding his lunch kit in the other.

“Can i sit?” He asked, looking around the group. 

Shorter, who had been turned around staring at god-knows-what, flipped around and excitedly nodded. “Dude! Yeah, sure sit! Sit!” Eiji’s shoulders relaxed as he dumped his bag onto the floor and slammed his lunch onto the table.

Seated left of him was a girl with very scary dark clothes and makeup, and on the right there was a kid who looked way too young to be in high school.

“Shorter? D’you know this guy?” Ash asked, seemingly not acknowledging Eiji.

“Yeah dude, he’s my new neighbor.” Shorter said, a little too loud.

Eiji interjected whilst unpacking his boxed lunch the Lobos made for him. “I’m actually just an exchange student, I’m from Japan.”

“Yeah, I know you said at the beginning of class.,” Ash said nodding towards Eiji then motioning to the people around the table. “You seem to already know me and Shorter, to your left is Nadia, Shorter’s older sister,” She gave a little wave to Eiji, and he suddenly saw the resemblance. “And to your left is Sing, he skipped a few grades.”

_ So that's why he looks so young.  _ Eiji thought to himself.

“And they aren’t here right now, but usually we have two more guys with us, Bones and Kong. They’re football players.”

The group nodded to Eiji. They all seemed to have Ash as their de-facto leader. There was a second of awkward exchanges of glances. So, Eiji opted to get rid of that awkwardness.

“So, uh, what are you guys eating?” he asked, unpacking his lunch to find a sandwich with some chips and fruit, an American classic. 

Sing pulled out a small metal jar, and opened it to reveal some old spaghetti inside. It smelled awful, but Eiji was trying to get on these guys’ good side, so he kept quiet. “Leftovers from last night, my mom packed it for me.”

“Sing, i mean this in the nicest way possible, that was probably one of the least cool things you’ve said in a while.” Ash said with a scoff and a grin. Ash took his feet off the table, and reached across the table and grabbed Nadia’s bag of potato chips.

“You see, my lunch is a bag of chips I stole from the creepiest girl in our grade.” He added while snarkily opening the bag and taking a handful. Nadia rolled her eyes. “Didn’t want those chips anyways.’ Nadia said half-sarcastically. 

“Why didn’t you bring your own lunch, Ash?” Eiji asked naively. Ash looked up and across the table at him. He appeared to be contemplating what to say, before bluntly responding: “Old man didn’t buy groceries this week.”

The table looked at Ash with a look of half shock, half confusion. “Why do all of you look like you just saw a dead body?” Ash annoyedly asked. 

“We met this guy today and you're already talking about your dad?” Shorter asked. “I know you for 5 years before you even told me you had parents-” Shorter seemed dumbfounded. “I thought you were an orphan for all of middle school.” 

“Yeah, what the hell dude,” Sing added.

Ash just shrugged and took another handful of chips. “I dunno,” he said, chewing with his mouth open, “Eiji just seems nice.”


	2. Baseball

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eiji has settled in nicely into his new life in America and feels a genuine connection with some of the students at his school, but he and Ash are growing ever close.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey Yall!! Sorry, this chapter took me waaaay longer than I thought it would for me to get out, but I haven't had power for a while :(( [Texas Sucks]
> 
> Anyways, Enjoy!!

Eiji awoke to a bump in the road. He was clutching his backpack in his lap when he remembered where he was- on the bus coming home from school. He’s not sure how he fell asleep, all he knows is that he’s still quite jet-lagged and he has been tired for most of his first week in American school. The bus comes to another stop and a mass of kids stand up- either to get off the bus or to move seats.

American school had been a lot more of a change than Eiji was expecting. But he was glad he at the very least had a few friends. Shorter, his next-door neighbor. Despite smelling like weed everywhere he went- was a genuinely nice guy, who took Eiji in. And Nadia, Shorter’s older sister. She looked scary, but was actually really smart- and helped teach Eiji new English words during lunch. Plus Sing, who was always hanging around- and Bones and Kong. Eiji felt like he had managed to develop a decent social life in his first week.

Eiji scoots further into his little corner and tries to doze back off- but as the bus starts moving again his head violently bangs against the metal wall. He sighs and sits up- stretching. They were still quite a ways away from his stop. So- he chooses to spend his time staring out the window, watching the identical homes of suburbia roll by. That’s when he saw him again. Ash, walking slowly down the sidewalk alone, hands in his pockets. Eiji could infer he was on his way home from school. 

Eiji really didn’t know what intrigued him so much about Ash, but as the bus slowly came to a stop and more kids got off the bus- he found himself standing and walking out of the yellow vehicle. It's as if his legs moved on their own, and suddenly he was crossing the street- walking directly at Ash. 

Ash stopped. A puzzled look on his face as the new kid crossed the road aimed right at him. Eiji put on a smile and waved, “Ash! Hey!”

Ash paused for a moment, before returning the favor with a wave of his own. Eiji stepped up onto the sidewalk and stopped in front of Ash. “Are you headed home?” He asked.

“Not yet, just kinda wandering around,” Ash responded as the bus pulled away, leaving the boys alone. 

“Oh, well,” Eiji naively began, “Can I join you?”

Ash laughed. The look of absolute enthrallment on Eiji’s face charmed him. “Sure, I know just the place.”

Ash turned on his heel, beginning down the road in the opposite direction, motioning for Eiji to follow him, and like a loyal dog, Eiji followed- his curiosity piqued. They seemed to be walking side by side for a while. Ash’s hair bounced ever-so-slightly, its shiny tone reflecting in the sun. Eiji caught himself staring as the locks satisfyingly rose and fell around Ash’s face, but Eiji chalked it up to never really seeing blonde hair up close before. 

Eiji had never really walked through this part of the neighborhood before. He was finally taking a chance to take a closer look at the homes around him. The first thing he noted, a lot of the homes were smaller and more run-down than where he was. The cars parked in the driveways, if there were any, were older models, and a lot of the lawns lacked irrigation. 

Ash seemed unphased by the change in housing quality, so Eiji tried his best to keep his cool. 

“So, Eiji, why’d you come to America?” Ash suddenly queried. 

Eiji’s face spun back to Ash, and he noticed Ash had been looking at him while he was inspecting his surroundings. “Well, I’ve never been outside Japan before, and I’m one of the top English students at my school.” Eiji began, “so when my school offered to pay for me to go to America, I didn't see a reason not to.”

“What about the other top students?” Ash continued.

“A couple of them went to other places. There's one in Texas and one in California. One girl also went to Ireland.”

“That’s cool.” Ash responded. “My family is Irish.”

Eiji nodded. 

The two boys then came to a ditch at the end of the road. It was blocked off by a railing, and the edges were surrounded by lackluster vegetation. Eiji went up to the railing and leaned over. Below them was a couple foot drop and then a makeshift river of the mud of debris. 

“This is the neighborhood’s old drainage system,” Ash said, coming up to the railing beside Eiji. “But it's all closed up now, so people just use it as a dump.”

There was a moment of silence. The wind calmly brushing through their hair. Then, Eiji watched in shock as Ash put his foot upon the railing and jumped off into the ditch below. Eiji leaned over the railing, scared of what he just witnessed. But then he saw a moving figure. Ash, standing up from where he landed after narrowly avoiding the giant puddle of mud.

“C’mon!” He shouted up. “The drop is shorter than it looks!” Eiji looked side to side. There was no one around. So, he took a deep breath, and with a slight running start jumped up onto the railing- sending him flying over the dead shrubbery into the ditch below.

He wasn’t as fortunate as Ash though. He landed feet first in the mud, the thick liquid splashing up onto his legs- covering him in brown up to his knees. Ash just about lost it.

He was standing a little bit further up on the incline into the ditch- one foot in the drainage pipe that was sticking out of the hill. And his body erupted in a fit of laughs.

Eiji couldn’t help but laugh along as Ash reached his hand out and pulled the black-haired boy into the pipe. They fell backward onto each other, still giggling. 

Ash helped Eiji wipe all the mud off of his legs, and eventually, they slumped against the sides of the pipe, staring at each other. 

“Hey, Eiji,” Ash said as Eiji wrung out his socks which were now a disgusting shade of dark brown. 

“Hm?”

“This might seem like a weird question…” He started, awkwardly pursing his lips as if he didn’t know quite how to phrase it, “But, like, what team do you swing for?”

Eiji stared blankly back at Ash. His head tilted ever so slightly as he processed the question. “I..” He began, “I don’t play baseball.”

“Oh-my-god..” Ash said like it was all one word, letting his head roll back as he turned his body halfway to face the walls of the drainpipe in embarrassment.

“What? What do you mean?” Eiji asked, pressing forward. 

Ash laughed again. “It’s nothing, don’t worry about it,” he said with a smile. “Y’know, nobody has ever really been able to make me laugh like you do.”

Eiji smiled. “Can I ask you a question now?”

“Go for it,” Ash said, leaning back against the wall.

“Hmmm,,,” Eiji thought aloud, “What’s your family like?”

Ash’s face dropped. “It’s kinda complicated, I’m not gonna lie.”

“That's fine, take all the time you need.” Eiji spun around to sit crisscrossed right in front of Ash, close enough that Eiji could mess with the shoelaces on Ash’s shoes. 

Ash sighed and began. “Well, first off- my mom’s not around.” He said while picking at a fleck of mud on his jeans. “And my brother is overseas in Iraq right now, so it's just me and my dad.” 

“Do you like your dad?” Eiji said, not looking up, but continuing to inspect Ash’s shoes. He could tell they were a size too small and were so worn the bottoms had almost no texture left.

“Not at all,” Ash responded. “He’s a lazy bum, barely does any work. He’s a grocery clerk down at the K-Mart, but he barely keeps any of his cash cause he made a bunch of shitty deals a while ago.”

“Deals?”

“There's this guy, Dino. He owns a bunch of clubs in the city. My dad decided to make some stupid bets with him, and now we owe him like- 100 grand or something.” Ash said exasperatedly. 

Eiji felt bad. Who wouldn’t? But at the same time what could he do? 

“Do you need a place to stay?” Is all Eiji could think to ask.

“Nah, we still have a roof over our heads,” Ash said, taking a strand of Eiji’s hair and twisting it between his thumb and index finger.

“You're kinda lucky. You know that right, Eiji?”

“How so?”

“If things ever get bad, you can always go back home.”

They both paused, as a gust of wind blew down the drainpipe making a satisfying echoing noise. It sent a chill down both of their spines. The sun was starting to go down now.

“We should probably head back soon,” Ash said, standing up as straight as he could, 

When the sun goes down possums swarm this place and eat anything that looks remotely alive.” 

Eiji reached his hand up, and Ash pulled Eiji from his seated position by his hands and brushed the final bits of dirt off of both of them. 

Ash stepped out onto the edge of the pipe, and after assessing his surroundings for a moment, pulled himself up onto the small ridge of the top of the pipe that stuck out of the hill. He reached his hand down and helped Eiji do the same, pulling his weight onto the ridge. After that, it was a short but steep walk back to the railing. 

Eiji found his backpack still laying on the ground, untouched. He picked it up with his right hand and walked with Ash back down the road they came.

That's when Eiji realized their hands were still interlocked.

“Um, Ash?” Eiji said, stopping, and holding Ash back with his grip.

“What?” 

Eiji pointed towards their hands, his eyes darting back and forth. He left out a cough to fill the awkwardness. 

Ash quickly pulled his hand away, his face reddening. “Oh, uh,” he said, wiping his hand on his jeans to get rid of the sweat. “Sorry.” Ash turned and started walking again, Eiji following. But this time the tension was palpable. Every time one of their lines of sight drifted, the other took in a sharp inhale. Both boys were red in the face, but neither wished to admit it.

Ash stopped in front of one of the many beat-down houses. He cleared his throat, “This is me,” he said pointing to the home. “Oh, um. Okay,” Eiji said, turning to him, and fumbling with his hands. “Thanks for showing me that place.” He said.

“Thanks for talking to me,” Ash shot back. “See you Monday?”

“Yeah!” Eiji said. “See you on Monday.”

They stood for a moment, before Ash pulled Eiji into a hug, his face sinking into the crook in Eiji’s neck. Eiji could feel Ash’s hands gripping the back of his shirt. Eiji remained too shocked to return much of the favor, instead, letting his hand loosely fall around Ash’s lower back.

Ash pulled back after savoring the moment for a little longer than usual, and Eiji waved him off as he entered his house. Eiji was able to find his way back home by following the school bus route, and as he entered he was greeted by warm hugs and questions about his well-being.

“Goodness, you're filthy! What did you do? Go ditch-diving?” Jessica exclaimed as he entered.

“Kind of, yeah,” Eiji said.

Jessica stared shocked at him. “You actually jumped in a ditch?”

“Yes.”

“I was right to be worried sick,” she mumbled to herself. “There's dinner on the table, go change into something clean and eat.” She said to Eiji, sending him to his room.

Eiji changed into his pajamas, a plain white t-shirt with long, soft satin pants. He was extremely grateful for how Jessica and Max treated him, but as he came home today the only thing he could think of was Ash, and how he was being treated right about now.

Eiji had put together that Ash’s dad was basically a deadbeat, so lord knows how he would react to his son coming home late and covered in mud. He took a moment to say a quick prayer for Ash’s wellbeing, before going down the stairs to join the Lobos for dinner. 

  
  


Needless to say, Eiji's dream that night was weird. He’s not sure what prompted it, but he dreamed of him and Ash stargazing on the moon. Far away from everyone else, just them two- laying in silence, watching the earth spin and finding constellations. It was peaceful. Relaxing even. 

He distinctly remembers Ash falling asleep on him. His usual tough-guy act disappearing, leaving only the kind, fun-loving kid that Ash really was deep down. He felt his dream self leaning down, lining his face up with Ash’s, and slowly leaning in, lips puckered. Just as their faces are about to meet, Eiji shoots awake.

His heart is racing. He can feel it beating in his feet as sweat falls down his face. He puts his hand over his mouth, trying to grasp what exactly he had just pictured. This wasn’t a normal feeling for Eiji. He had never had any dreams like this about anyone, especially a dude. 

Eiji didn’t even know he could feel that way about a guy. He let himself fall back into his bed, staring at his ceiling. He was wide-awake now. Thought circled his mind.

_ What if Ash can tell? Does Ash like him too? What if Ash thinks he’s weird? _

And the one that kept coming back,

_ What the hell did Ash mean when he asked “what team do you swing for?” _

Eiji put a pillow over his face and screamed. He had heard that crushes were brutal, but he didn’t think they were this annoying. It's like he couldn’t go a single second without Ash crossing his mind. 

He muttered to himself in Japanese. “What the hell have I gotten myself into..”

Eiji rubbed his eyes and checked his alarm clock. It was 5:17 AM, on a weekend, but considering Eiji’s sleep schedule over the past week- it wasn’t an out of the ordinary time of awakening.

He put on some breathable clothes, some loose shorts and t-shirt, and left his room. The rest of the house was still peacefully asleep, so he quietly made himself some breakfast- just buttered toast and a glass or orange juice. He had slowly grown accustomed to American food and was enjoying it way more than he thought he would. 

Wanting to get out of the house early, he wrote a note to the Lobo family and left it on the dining table.

_ I went out to explore the neighborhood a bit. I’ll be back in a little. _

_ <3 _

_ -Eiji _

He put on his sneakers, grabbed a bit of cash and the spare key they gave him, and left. He wasn’t one hundred percent sure where he was headed, but he started down the road, this time turning down a path he had never gone down before. 

The town was a lot less interesting than he expected it to be. When signing up for the exchange program, they told him he’d be going to Buffalo, New York- but he somehow ended up forty-five minutes outside of the city, in a tiny suburb that anyone could easily overlook. 

There were your typical rows of garbage fast-food joints, the giant high school he attended every day, and one too many churches as he walked through the town. But, eventually, he came upon the building he was looking for: The library. 

He had a plan for what he was going to do. 

  1. Find the library, and go in.



Check.

  1. Somehow get in and find the book you're looking for without being hounded by library staff.
  2. Try to read it without needing to find a book to translate it.



It all seemed simple enough, but too much of his hopes were riding in the fact that he thought the library staff would be preoccupied with other patrons- but as he entered he quickly remembered it was only 6 in the morning on a Saturday. He was the only person in the library.

When he opened the door, he heard a bell above the door ring, alerting the current desk clerk of his arrival, and within seconds a colorfully dressed woman was walking towards him with a deceitfully friendly smile stretched across her face.

Eiji immediately began trying to dodge her. He weaved into the closest aisle, grabbing a library map on his way. But he could hear her quickly and quietly shuffling towards him. So, he looked at the map, trying to figure out where books on English expressions or well-known phrases could be found. He settled on the section labeled “Grammar/Informational,” and tried his best to beeline to it while avoiding talking to the creepy old librarian.

As he found the section, he felt relatively safe in the belief that the librarian had given up her efforts in following him, so he began taking a closer look at the titles on the shelves. He scanned over the titles. Eiji found dictionaries, thesauruses, and eventually the exact thing he was looking for: a book on popular english expressions. 

He sat down in the aisle and began flipping through the pages, looking for that one phrase:

_ What team do you swing for? _

But as he turned the final page, he came up with nothing. There was no mention of any such phrase in this book. He sighed, annoyed that he had come all this way to no avail. Frustrated, he slammed the book shut and was about to slide it back onto the shelf, when he heard the bell on the door ring again. He peeked through the gap in the shelf where his book was originally to try and see who had just walked in. 

He held his breath as he saw that familiar tuffle of blonde hair wander into the library’s center space. It was Ash. He watched as Ash pulled a book out of his jacket pocket, and as he handed it to the librarian as she casually passed him. He turned, looking around at the shelves of books, before heading to the section next to Eiji. 

Eiji let out a sharp exhale as the realization hit him, Ash was going to the aisle right next to him. Meaning, Ash would surely see him. Eiji, in a panic, began to put his book back on the shelf and stand up, but it was already too late. He was in a stand-off-style staring contest with Ash across the aisle. 

“Eiji?” Ash said, “Why the hell are you here so early?”

“I could say the same for you,” Eiji responded. “I’m just studying my English,” Eiji fibbed on the spot.

“Yeah, I was just, uh, getting a book to read over the weekend,” Ash said. 

“Do you know what book?” Eiji queried. 

“I think,” Ash said, “The librarian recommended I read The Catcher in The Rye, so I was gonna grab it.”

“That's cool..” Eiji said, awkwardly leaning back and forth on his feet, “Well, uh, I’m gonna go-” He said, as he began walking past Ash towards the exit.

“Wait-” Ash grabbed Eiji’s shoulder and spun him around as he passed. “I forgot to ask you last night, but me and the gang are going up to Niagara Falls tonight, wanna join us?”

That was the first time Eiji really realized it. He was only about 2 and a half hours away from one of the grandest waterfalls in the world, and he had never even thought to visit it. “Yeah- yeah sure! That sounds fun!” Eiji responded.

“Meet me at the pipe at 3,” Ash said, patting Eiji on the shoulder. “And pack stuff for an overnight stay.”

Ash smiled at Eiji and turned back to the shelves to look for his book, and Eiji exited the library, suspiciously not holding a book. As he left he glanced at the clock displayed above the doors. 6:45. The bell above the door jingled as he pushed open the door, and he began backtracking his steps all the way back home.

As he arrived home, Jessica and Max were eating breakfast at the table, Jessica flipping through the newspaper and Max filling out some vague paperwork. He waved at them as he entered, and went to his room.

Grabbing his backpack, he begins stuffing it with anything and everything he thought he might need. An extra set of clothes, a swimsuit, a comb, and his camera. He went downstairs to get some snacks to also throw in the bag and had a quick conversation with his host family about his plans for later that day, and with that he was ready.

Now all he had to do was count down the hours until the trip was upon him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hope yall enjoyed it! I tried to throw a few canon Easter Eggs in there, ex- Ash's family being Irish, and Ash reading The Catcher in the Rye. 
> 
> Chapter 3 is already in the works. <3


	3. The Fall

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The gang finally takes their trip to Niagara. Eiji is living the perfect American teenage dream.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The gangs all here

Eiji moved down the road at a brisk pace. When he left his house it was about 2:40, and he had been walking for 10-ish minutes. He made his way down that same path he and Ash had walked, and at that same dead-end, came across the railing overlooking the ditch. As he looked out over the chasm of mud and trash, it appeared empty- but Eiji now knew the secrets of this place.

Eiji pushed himself over the railing, this time carrying his backpack with him, but instead of leaping into the piles of mud below- he opted to inch his way down the steep hill, get onto the top of the drainpipe, and swing himself into it. 

As he swung his body into the cylinder of metal, there were a few others there. Ash was playing with a deck of cards, Sing was laying on his back, and Shorter and Nadia seemed to be having an argument.

“I don’t care how much makeup you have- you can’t take up ¾’s of the bathroom with your shit!” Eiji caught Shorter saying as he entered.

“It's not like you have anything you need to put there anyways- I can’t even remember the last time you showered.” Nadia shot back.

“Stop fighting! If you guys are gonna be like this for the whole trip- I’m out.” Ash said, throwing the box of cards at Shorter’s back. 

Eiji stood, realizing no one had noticed his arrival. He cleared his throat.

“Oh- Eiji!” Ash stood, “Now we're only waiting on Bones, Kong, and Skip.” 

That was a new name. Eiji always wondered how Ash managed to have so many friends.

“Who’s Skip?”

Ash’s eyes widened and a smile grew on his face, “That’s right, you haven’t met him yet.” He started, “Don’t worry- he’s great. You’ll love him.”

It was almost on cue that the 3 missing boys showed up, being welcomed with open arms just like Eiji expected they would be. However, the one thing he didn’t expect was who Skip turned out to be.

He couldn’t have been more than 13. He wore overalls and stood a foot shorter than every other kid in the tunnel. Yet, he was still greeted as if he was just another high schooler, even though he was probably no older than a 7th grader.

Eiji piped up, “So, how exactly are we getting to Niagara Falls?” he said, just now realizing that he didn’t see any vehicles parked nearby on his way here.

Nadia spoke directly to him, “At the other end of this drainpipe- there's an empty parking lot. My truck is parked there.” She pulled out a chain of keys and jingled them in her hands.

“So let's get walking before the possums eat us alive.” Sing said, already moving down the pipe, his voice echoing back at the group.

The group slowly inched down the piping, casual conversation drifting between the teenagers. Ash and Eiji walked side by side at the back of the group. Every once in a while, a gust of wind would blow in from behind them, and send a shiver down their spines, but Ash pretended to be unbothered. 

Then- a weird noise was heard echoing down the metal enclosure. The whole group stopped, peering around to each other.

“What was that?” Bones said from in front of Eiji.

….

“Sing? Naddy? Can you guys see anything?” Skip asked.

“It's far away- you could hear it echo a lot,” Ash said. “If we keep going maybe it will go away.”

The group nodded to one another, continuing to move forward at a fraction of the original speed. They were all much closer together as they marched, and their conversations had been sliced to nothing but the dull silence of their shuffling feet.

Then the weird sound again. It was like a groaning noise- like a mix between a creaky door and someone screaming for their life. The group stopped again. Although he was the only one to notice, Eiji saw Ash gulp- and a bead of sweat fell down his face.

The sound echoed again, and he saw Ash's lips purse.

“Quit stopping, you damn cowards!” Shorter said. “If we keep going at this pace we won’t get to the falls until we're all 50.”

And with that note, Shorter stomped ahead of the group, semi-speed walking to build a distance between him and the rest of the party. Another noise, this one sounded pained, Eiji could hear the strain and anguish of whatever was making that noise. Ash sensed it too.

Eiji looked back at Ash, and they exchanged a worried glance, and Ash did something Eiji never expected him to do, especially with other people round. He extended his hand, a slight tremble in his wrist. Eiji took the hint, interlocking his fingers with Ash’s and giving him a comforting squeeze. Ash let out a silent sigh of approval, and the two boys continued to move with the rest of the group, hoping no one would turn around to see them.

About 5 minutes of walking later, and Ash shaking in Eiji’s hand every time that screeching noise played, suddenly they heard a loud  _ BANG _ from up ahead, followed by a snarky remark from Nadia, “Oh my god, you’re stupid.” 

Eiji peeked around the crowd of people to see Shorter- facefirst on the metal floor, having tripped over a small cardboard box in the middle of the pipe. Sing squatted down, and picked up the box- before gasping.

“What? What is it?” Bones asked, and Kong nodded along.

“Its- It's a cat.” 

Low and behold, Sing picked up the cardboard box again to reveal a small- injured and malnourished black cat, and as it hissed at the crowd of people- everyone was able to put two and two together, realizing that this was the source of that terrifying noise.

“Are you kidding me?” Nadia said. “We were all terrified that a serial killer might be loose in the town’s drainage system and it just turns out to be a damn cat?”

“Calm down, Naddy.” Ash said. “You're scaring it.”

Ash let go of Eiji’s hand as he said that, taking a few steps forward and squatting down by the cat. He slowly reached his hand out towards the animal, who nuzzled into his palm. “Someone put him-” he said, picking up the cat, “er-  _ her-  _ in your bag.”

“Ash-” Shorter said, “What the hell are we going to do with a  _ cat? _ ” 

“We'll drop her off at the shelter on our way outta town, if no one claims her by the time we get back- I’ll take her home.”

“Do you really think your dad will let you have a cat?” Skip asks, taking the cat out of Ash’s hands, and wrapping her in a spare jacket he had packed.

“It's not a matter of if he will let me- it's a matter of his he finds out,” Ash said with a smirk. “C’mon, let's hurry up. We're almost out.”

And with that, the group began walking again, with Skip holding the new cat they had just found, and Ash leading the group. In no time, the group resurfaced on the other end of the pipe, all of them climbing out, and going up a semi-steep hill to be greeted by a parking lot with a single blue pickup truck parked in the center. 

The group ran over and began piling into the bed of the truck, which had already been outfitted with old blankets and pillows provided by the one and only Shorter. They all smelled like marijuana, but it's the thought that counts.

Nadia and Shorter took the two seats in the front of the truck, but they rolled the back window down so they could still chat with the whole group. It was about 4 or 4:30 by now- Eiji couldn’t tell, but the sun was beginning to go down. 

So, they decided to start the drive. First stop, the animal shelter. Luckily, it was on the outskirts of town- so they were able to drop off the cat on their way out-and they notified the staff they’d be back to adopt her if she wasn’t adopted in the time they were gone.

Then- it was nothing but the kids and the open road. Eiji could feel the wind in his hair as they ignored all the speed laws. There weren’t any cops out here anyway. Skip and Sing were chatting about nothing in particular, Ash, Bones, and Kong were playing a bumpy game of blackjack with the card Ash had brought, Shorter and Nadia were arguing about the radio- each of them changing the channel back and forth every couple of seconds, and Sing was out cold. So, Eiji was left to watch the world around them fly by. 

They weren’t necessarily in a town right now, but they weren’t in a barren wasteland either. The houses were few and far between, and there weren’t too many cars on the road- so Eiji took in the fresh New York air.

This was the first time it really hit him. He was on the other side of the planet right now. His family was probably busy at work right now, and he was having the time of his life with his newfound friends. Never did he think he’d ever leave Japan, but now he was getting increasingly happy that he did.

“Oi, Eiji,” Eiji was snapped out of his daze by the sound of Ash calling his name. “Do you know how to play blackjack?”

Eiji shook his head, and Ash motioned for Eiji to come sit beside him. Eiji shuffled over the blankets and food trash the boys had tossed around the truck bed and scooting in close to Ash. Ash held two cards from the deck between them, “we'll play together, I’ll teach you.”

Eiji leaned in, looking at the card they had. A four and a Queen. He looked around to see Skip and Bones also holding two cards, and Kong with one card, a 7, face up in front of him, one card face down.

Ash cleared his throat, “So, the goal is to beat the dealer. In this case, it’s Kong.” He began. “The goal is to get a total score as close to twenty-one as possible- without going over. Number cards equal their number, kings, queens, and jacks are all 10 points, and Aces can be 1s or 11s, you choose.”

Eiji nodded. 

“Then the dealer goes around and asks if you want a card.” Ash finished as he nodded to Kong to start the game. Kong went in a circle, starting with Bones- who took a card, then Skip- who passed, and finally to Ash and Eiji. Ash looked over to Eiji, giving him a look that basically said, “ _ what do you want to do?”  _

“Um, yeah. Give us a card.” Eiji said. Kong handed one over, and they looked at it. A six. For a total score of twenty, the boys were feeling pretty confident.

Ash then went back on his speech of how the game works, “Then he goes around again until no one wants a card anymore.” Bones didn’t want another card, so Kong set the deck down on the truck bed.

“And finally, the dealer reveals his second card, then draws until he hits 17 or more. If he goes over 21, we win.”

“That's it?” Eiji questioned, expecting it to be more complicated.

“That's it. Kong, go for it.” 

Kong flipped over his hidden card, showing it to be a 9. He winced. “That’s brutal.” Because his total was only 16, he was forced to draw another card. He flipped a card off the top of the deck, a 3, and sighed. A total of 19. “Alright, players reveal their deck.”

Bones sighed and slammed his card down, revealing his grand total of 17. “This game is rigged.” He mumbled to himself. Skip revealed his deck next, showing he had a 19. He had a humble look on his face.

Ash’s signature smirk took to his face. “Sorry boys, beginners luck I guess.” He dropped his hand onto the ground, showing off their twenty, and the other boys groaned. Ash and Eiji laughed at their reaction, savoring the sweet taste of victory.

The boys kept playing Blackjack until the sun had dipped so low in the sky they could no longer see their cards, All of them laughing and joking the whole time. Eiji even got a chance to have them all try some Japanese snacks he had packed from his flight and tried some classic American snacks in return.

But then, in the distance, he heard the telltale sound of pouring water, and a city rising in the distance- and he knew they were nearing the fabled falls. And then, before he knew it they were in the middle of a tourist extravaganza. They pulled into a crowded parking lot- barely able to find a spot and everyone unloaded from the truck.

Eiji was looking towards the marked out path leading to the overhang of the falls that tourists always went to, but then he noticed the group was headed directly into the thick of the woods. Eiji caught up with them and nudged Shorter’s shoulder. 

Shorter spun around, “What is it, bro?”

“Where are we going?” Eiji questioned.

“Secret Spot, we don’t wanna deal with all these crowds.” Shorter said. “Just trust us.”

So, Eiji trusted them, and before he knew it the parking lot was far out of sight, and they were illegally marching through the thick of the woods. But, despite how lost he felt, Eiji could still hear the sound of rushing water, signifying they had stayed generally close to the falls.

And that's when he saw it. The place seemed like an Oasis. A clearing in the trees, with an empty pre-used handmade fire pit, and a medium-sized pool of water being fed into by a stream that Eiji could on presume came right from Niagara. Sing instinctively went over to a tree that looked like it had been decimated by termites leaving only a hollow stump, and reached into it, pulling a lawn chair out. A few others did the same, setting them up around the fire-pit.

“So, Eiji, What do you think?” Shorter said as if he was showing this place off as a work of art.

“It's beautiful.” He said. 

“Yeah don't get used to it, this place will be a wreck by the time we leave,” Ash said, taking his shirt off and walking behind a rock formation.

Nadia was also unclothing, already having a swimsuit on underneath, a black one piece. She slowly slid into the pool holding a magazine, and Eiji realized it was deeper than he had expected. 

Bones, Kong, and Sing all set up lawn chairs, all of which were extremely dirty and falling apart, but none of the boys seemed to care. And Skip was gathering sticks and tossing them into the makeshift fire pit. 

Eiji was debating who to join, when Ash emerged from behind the rock formation, in his swimsuit- and Eiji’s eyes couldn’t help but wander. Ash was somehow so perfect in every setting, just so satisfying to the eye. 

Ash lazily sunk into the water, letting his hair roll back against the edge- just out of the water. Eiji, still looking at Ash, swung his top off in one foul swoop. He was wearing athletic shorts he didn’t care about too much, so he wandered over to the water, and stepped in. It was a decent temperature, not too cold but definitely not warm enough. 

He scooted over to Ash, who made room on the underwater rock he was sitting on for Eiji. “This place is nice, huh?” Ash said quietly, so only Eiji could hear.

“Yeah,” Eiji responded. “How did you even find a place like this?”

“It’s kinda a long story,” Ash said, picking at some moss growing on the rock.

“I don’t mind listening.”

“Well, when I found out my dad had made those shitty deals, I got so mad I stole his car and drove all the way out here in the middle of the night. People say the cops were looking for me everywhere but no one thought that I would be stupid enough to drive to the fuckin’ falls.” Ash said, laughing. “Once I got here though, the gates for tourists were closed, so I parked the car, hopped the fence, and ran into the woods. Eventually, I found this place, and it’s been our gang’s little secret ever since.” Ash finished, he cleared his throat. “Oi Shorter!” he shouted. “Toss me a bud!”

Suddenly a blue can was flying through the air, and Eiji instinctively ducked to avoid it. Ash caught it mid-air above his head, lovingly laughing at Eiji’s over-the-top reaction.

“Have you ever drank before?” Ash said, cracking open the can of beer.

“Once or twice, but only with my family,” Eiji said.

“You wanna try some of mine?” Ash said, offering Eiji the can. 

Eiji thought for a moment, before taking the can and throwing it back over his mouth, taking 2 large gulps before coming up for air. It was tangy, leaving a fizzing sensation on his tongue. The taste wasn't necessarily pleasant, but it wasn’t unbearable. Eiji handed the can back over the Ash, who stood in shock, blinking blankly for a couple of seconds. 

“Damn, okay. A simple yes- would have been enough.” He jokingly said, causing both boys to erupt into a fit of giggles. 

Skip dug through his backpack and pulled out some hot dogs and buns, putting them on the ground as he continued to search through his stuff. “Ah shoot, did anyone bring a lighter?” He said as he reached the bottom of his bag. 

“Huh? Yeah, One second.” Ash said, standing up and dripping water all over Eiji as he got out of the pool. “ He dug into his bag and pulled out a box of matches, and tossed them to Skip.

Nadia piped up at this action, “I’m pretty sure it's a fire hazard to throw matches in a forest.” 

Ash sighed, looking at the girl, “Naddy, I want you to take a good look at me and tell me if you think I care.” 

Nadia rolled her eyes. “Make me a hot dog!” She shouted through her magazine. 

Everything seemed just about perfect, Eiji thought as Ash slid back into the water next to him. They took turns passing the beer back and forth, cracking jokes and chatting. It was just about 10 when all of them laid their blankets and towels in a circle around the fire and all ate food together.

Yes, this was almost the perfect American experience, sitting by a fire beside Niagara falls, eating hotdogs, and chatting about all the dumb things they’ve all done.

Then, the first sign of danger sounded. A crack of thunder echoed through the sky and they all looked up.

“Oh C’mon.” Shorter said, smashing an empty can into the floor to flatten it. 

The first drops of water began falling. Ash was the first to notice as a drop landed square on his nose. Then the fire began flickering, and everyone went into a panic trying to grab all their things and get them out of the water.

“Where do we go?” Eiji said, stuffing his things back into his bag as the rain got faster. 

“There's a cave not far, follow me.” Sing said as he started sprinting through the trees. 

So the group followed the quick freshman through the woods, and low and behold soon came upon a cave, tucked away from the rain. They all piled inside to find a surprisingly spacious inside. Bones and Kong worked on making a new fire, while the others sorted out which blankets were too wet to use and which were still sleepable. 

“Well, that sucks.” Skip said, laying down by the newly constructed fire. 

Everyone agreed, still sorting through their belongings and laying things out to dry.

“I guess we won’t head back till morning,” Nadia said.

“Well, I’m going to sleep.” Shorter said, rolling over and wrapping a half-soggy blanket around himself. The others followed suit, all of them rolling over on their own, passing out around the fire- until Ash and Eiji were the only two still awake, sitting beside each other. 

They waited for a few minutes as everyone dozed to sleep, eating their food and passing another can back and forth,

“Guess they were tired, huh,” Ash whispered.

“Guess so…” Eiji responded awkwardly. He could feel the familiar tension building between them. Ash scooted closer to Eiji. Eiji gulped, feeling his face turn red.

Ash leaned his head against Eiji’s shoulder. “Hey, so..” He said, clearing his throat mid-sentence, “You remember that weird question that I asked earlier?”

_ What team do you swing for? _

Eiji remembered it well. “Course I do,” Eiji responded. “I still don’t know what it means.”

Ash let out a puff of air in amusement. “Don’t worry about it. It doesn’t matter anymore.” He said. Eiji could feel Ash’s head turn to look at Eiji, still laying on his shoulder. Eiji turned his head to face Ash’s. 

Their faces were but inches apart. Eiji felt as if he could feel both of their hearts beating rapidly, and he felt his body move without his mind. His eyes shut and he thrust his face forward, moving his lips to Ash’s. He felt Ash’s body tense for a moment, before they both went loose, moving their hands and bodies closer.

Ash pulled away after a couple of seconds. His eyes shining as a look of shock and confusion took over his expression. “Eiji- what-,”

“I don’t know either,” Eiji said. “But you are perfect, that's all I’m sure of.” 

Ash was shocked, he put his hand on Eiji’s forearm, his nails digging into the other boy’s skin. “Do you mean it?” He whispered, his eyes aimed at the floor.

Eiji placed his hand beneath Ash’s chin, pulling his face up to make eye contact. “Of course I mean it.” 

The boys fell asleep together, wrapped up under one blanket. That same tension still ever-present but now slightly more broken down. The sleep on the cave floor was uncomfortable, yet each boy savored the presence of the other to where neither of them cared. And as the night turned to morning, they awoke- happy to be in each other’s arms- holding not only each other, but also the secrets of the night before.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yayay! happy ending!
> 
> /not for long/


	4. Cats have Claws

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shorter, Ash and Eiji discuss some private affairs, and Ash finally adopts the cat he wanted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey y’all! this chapter has a slight abuse TW, nothing bad, i promise.   
> hope you enjoy! <3

The next day was needless to say: awkward. Eiji and Ash awoke before the others and silently moved away from each other- avoiding eye contact, both of them unsure if the events of the night prior were even real. Eiji also found himself with a pounding headache, most likely the result of the drinking he did that he was not entirely accustomed to. 

The other teens began to wake themselves up, all sore and tired from the event of the day before, but all happy to be in the presence of friends. People began cleaning up their space, which included rolling up their blankets, and putting out the fire. Ash was the one to make the first venture out to their original campsite, where they had left their chairs and trash. 

Eiji quietly sneaked out after Ash a few minutes later, trying to remain unnoticed by the rest of the group. As he walked back through the trees, he saw Ash bent over with a trash bag, picking wrappers and old cans into it. Eiji cleared his throat, causing Ash to jump.

“Jesus Christ, you scared me,” Ash said, turning to see Eiji.

Eiji looked at Ash with pursed lips. “Sorry,” His eyes wandered as he tried to somehow address the elephant in the room. “So, um, about last night…”

“Yeah, about last night.” 

Eiji heard a voice behind him, the color draining from his face as his eyes locked with Ash, a shared look of fear between them.

Eiji slowly turned his head around, and to his horror saw a purple haired teenage boy standing in the brush. “So do you guys want to explain anything?”

“I don’t know what you're talking about.” Ash immediately interjected, trying to shoot down anything Shorter may have been suggesting.

“Ash, don’t even try that right now. I was awake last night. I saw you two.” Shorter said, stepping over the last few bushes and roots to meet the other two boys. Eiji was still frozen, his feet still stuck planted to the ground. Ash was supposed to be his secret. It couldn’t all be over already, he liked Ash too much.

The three stood staring at each other for a moment, “So are you two like.. Y’know?” Shorter was clearly uncomfortable. 

Ash gulped, his eyes shimmering as he let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding. “I don’t know man. Maybe?” 

That caught Eiji’s attention, with all the conversation they had last night, he thought he deserved more than just ‘Maybe.’ “What do you mean ‘Maybe?’” Eiji said, anger taking to his face as he turned to Ash. 

Ash’s face winced as he responded, “We’ll talk it out later!” He tried diffusing the situation, taking a step back and putting his hands out to both of them. He whipped his head towards Shorter, his expression now taking to a more empathetic and pleading look, “Just, please don’t tell anyone.”

This Eiji agreed on, nodding along- his still angry face now turned to Shorter.

“Yeah, yeah-” Shorter said, putting his hands up by his shoulders, “Whatever you want.”

A wind blew through the trees, brushing against each of the boys- as if carrying the secret they all knew far away. “I’m gonna head back, before people get suspicious.” Shorter said, nervously. “See ya dudes.” Eiji thought that this was probably the first time had seen Shorter genuinely stressed. 

Ash and Eiji stood in place as the purple mohawk disappeared into the wood, each of them letting out a sigh of relief once he was gone. Ash’s body curled in on itself, his hands curling into fists as he said a hushed  _ “shit..” _

Eiji moved over to comfort him, walking over next to him, and pulling him onto a tree trunk that had fallen over in the storm before. Ash hung his head in his hands, and Eiji caressed his back as Ash exhaled shaky breaths. Slowly but surely, he calmed himself down enough to a conversational level. 

“So, what do we do?” Ash said, finally shifting his head to meet Eiji. His green eyes, sparkling as if on the verge of tears but never quite letting themself go. Eiji rolled his hand through Ash’s hair, smiling as though to comfort the boy.

“I’m not sure.” Eiji said. “The last thing I want is to be without you right now.”

Ash smiled. Eiji somehow always knew how to lift his spirits. “I don’t want you to go either.” Ash responded while sitting up straight, regaining some of his shot confidence. “But it's gonna be hard to make this work.”

“How so?” Eiji questioned.

“Well my dad isn’t really chill with it,” Ash started. “How do your parents feel about this kinda stuff?”

Eiji seemed confused, and needing clarification he asked, “What kind of stuff?”

Ash let out an exasperated sigh. “Us, Eiji. Gay people. Homosexuals. Men kissing in secret whilst in a cave surrounded by unknowing friends! Whatever you want to call it.”

“I’m not sure, then.” Eiji said. “People like that don’t really exist where I’m from. Most people either don’t know that liking the same gender is even an option- or they just choose to ignore it.”

“Well that’s not great.” Ash stood as he spoke, pulling Eiji up by the hands as well, and they began cleaning the area again. “But it’s certainly better than here.”

Eiji followed close behind Ash, picking up food wrappers and smashed coke cans along the way. “People here are mean?” Eiji guessed.

“You could say that,” Ash said. “All I wanna say is get used to people calling you an abomination of God.”

“That’s awful!” Eiji said.

“Yeah, well it's life now.”

The boys continued to clean and chat- away from the rest of the group, even exchanging small notes of affection, maybe a graze of their hands or a ruffle of the hair. But, eventually they had to go back to the rest of the group- and with a bag of trash hauled over Ash’s shoulder, they walked back into the cave. Shorter gave a knowing look to Eiji, making his skin tense against his flesh. It was as if there was a mist over the air, infecting the 3 boys who knew the truth. 

Ash cleared his throat as he entered, his stance and mindset seemingly unaffected by the event that occurred only moments before. Eiji attempted to mimic his confidence, but still found himself nervous after everything that Ash told him about how some people feel about their “lifestyle.” 

“You guys ready to leave?” Ash said assertively, the group turned to him as he spoke.

“Yeah, just about.” Nadia said.

“I’m sleeping in the car on the way back.” Sing complained. “This was probably one of the least comfortable sleeps I’ve ever had.” 

“You sound like an old man, jeez.” Bones said. “C’mon, let's get going before the tourists get here.”

So the group set off back out of the woods, following a trail that was still mostly foreign to Eiji, but low and behold eventually they stepped out of the thick of the trees to see a parking lot, completely empty aside from their truck.

The teens all loaded into the truck in a similar fashion to when they drove to The Falls. Shorter and Nadia in the front, with everyone else sprawled out dangerously on the truck bed, and before they even pulled out of the parking lot, Sing, Skipper, Bones, and Kong were already dozing off on the infinitely softer blankets and pillows, leaving only Ash and Eiji as the engine started up and the car began to roll down the endless countryside.

They leaned over the truck’s side together, the wind whipping at their clothes and hair. Eiji stared at the city in the distance, feeling Ash hand ever-so-slightly creep around his lower back, gently pulling him closer into a side embrace. He nervously turned his head around to ensure the other kids were asleep, before relaxing his head in Ash’s chest. 

“I wanna kiss you again.” Ash said to Eiji.

“You're crazy, or have you already forgotten what happened last time?” Eiji joked, slapping Ash’s calf. 

“Can a guy not dream?” Ash said, bouncing off of Eiji’s playful tone. 

Eiji isn’t quite sure what comes over him when he talks to Ash. They had only known each other for a little over a week now, yet everytime the two were alone he felt like the weight of the world was lifted off of his shoulders for a short while. 

So the boys sat there. As the sun slowly rose over the New York sky, they had yet another ‘almost’ moment of security. They were almost alone. They were almost completely safe. 

They woke up again as the car pulled up outside the animal shelter. Ash and Eiji had unknowingly fallen asleep on the car ride, both of them still groggy from the poor night sleep.

“Ash, go get your cat!” Shorted called out, looking at him through the rearview mirror.

Ash shook his head to wake himself up, looking adorable clueless as his brain caught up to his body, before calling out “Right! One second!”

He gingerly leaned Eiji onto the side of the truck bed, and hopped out the back of the vehicle. He walked into the animal shelter, hand in his pockets- and a few moments later he walked out with a cat in a carrier, holding it under his arm.

The whole group had woken up by the time he came back.

“So, how do you plan to hide a cat from your dad?” Skipper asked as Ash placed the carrier in the truck bed and climbed in. He leaned up against where he was sitting before and placed the carrier in his lap, wrapping his arms around it to keep it from bouncing around. The cat meowed at him, clawing at the cage.

“It shouldn’t be too difficult, I've hidden bigger things before.” He said, sticking his finger into the cage and letting the cat scratch at it. “I’ll sneak her in through the window and keep her in my closet. I'll also go to the store to get her food and whatnot. And whenever my dad leaves the house I’ll let her roam.”

“You seem to have already planned this all out.” Eiji said, rubbing his eyes. 

“I’ve got a plan for everything.” Ash said.

Nadia slowly drove through the neighborhood, dropping everyone off at their houses. First it was Bones and Kong, who lived across the street from each other in midsize houses, then Skipper and Singwho lived in the same apartment complex. Next, they drove to Ash’s place, the most run-down of all of them, but instead of heading for the front door like the other kids did, he snuck around to the back of his house, and opened a window. Eiji watched as he quietly slid the cat carrier into the house, then as he climbed his way into the house as well, the window closing behind him. Shorter made a comment about how ‘he should be a thief...’ with that level of sneakiness. 

Finally, the trio drove to the other side of town where they lived next to each other. Nadia pulled into her and Shorter’s driveway, and the two of them hopped out of the car and turned off the engine. Eiji slid off the back of the truck, stretching his legs and grabbing his now significantly lighter bag. 

“Hey, uh, thanks for inviting me.” Eiji said, walking around to the front of the car.

“No problem man!” Shorter said, pulling his own bag out of the car.

“Really, don’t sweat it. You’re a part of the group now.” Nadia said with a smile. She pulled him into a hug. “See you at school tomorrow.”

And Eiji parted ways with them, jumping a small hedge divider between the two properties, and bounding up the steps to the Lobo's house. He dug his hand into his bag to pull out the spare keys he had been given, and let himself into the house. Taking off his shoes, he called out a quick “I’m home!” before heading up the stairs to his room. 

He changed out of his clothes as he had been wearing them for upwards of 48 hours now, and got into something new. He spent the day relaxing in his room, before being called down for dinner by Jessica. 

It was another American classic, baby back ribs. The family sat around the table eating, and chatting. Eiji discussed the details of his trip with his new friends- telling Max and Jessica about the secret clearing, the storm, and the cave, but he left out the parts about him and Ash. 

“Now, who all was there with you?” Max asked, “You keep saying ‘friends,’ but I’ve just realized we still don't know who you're hanging out with.”

“Well, there's Shorter and Nadia from next door, Bones and Kong, they’re football players, Skipper, Sing, and Ash.”

“Who’s Ash, I don’t recognize that name.”

“Callenreese.” Eiji said with a mouthful of ribs.

“You mean Aslan Callenresse?” Jessica said with a worried expression. “I’d be careful around him, I heard his family has ties with the Mafia in the city.”

“Yeah, rumor is his dad works in cahoots with some pretty scary guys.” Max added.

“Well he’s really nice.” Eiji said, taking another bite of his ribs- a little annoyed that Jessica and Max would believe such rumors. 

“Just be careful,” Jessica said, the concern in her voice rising.

They finished Dinner and the family split ways for the night, all heading into their separate rooms. Eiji took the time to go through his camera and look at the photos of the night before. It wasn’t long until it was deep into the night and he could hear the crickets chirping in the endless silence of the neighborhood.

_ Knock. _

The silence was broken by the sound of a pounding at the door.

_ Knock. Knock.  _

Once again there was a pounding at the door, Eiji wondered who could be here so late at night.

_ Knock. Knock. Knock. Knock. Knock. Knock. Knock. Knock. Knock. Knock.  _

The knocks were rising in speed and panic, and Eiji couldn’t stand the sound. He rushed down the staircase, tripping over his own feet, and swinging open the front door.

There, beaten and bruised in front of him, was a shaking Ash. His head hung low, but Eiji could see a bruise over his eye peeking through his blonde hair. Eiji could only stare at what was before him. A trail of blood fell down Ash’s face, and Eiji ushered him in without a word. 

Still, without speaking Eiji dug through the kitchen cabinets trying to be as quiet as possible, and eventually found a first-aid kit. As he began to wipe away the blood and clean off his face, Ash spoke.

“Sorry for making you do all this,” He said in a low, gravelly voice. 

“Don’t apologize.” Eiji said sternly. He pulled back to look Ash in the eyes. “What the hell happened?”

Ash’s voice and body shook. “My dad found the cat.” Is all he could muster out to say.

Eiji’s face dropped. He put his hand on Ash’s. “I’m so sorry…’

“He picked her up and threw her against the wall, man. He said to ‘never bring another useless animal home.’ She’s..”

Ash’s voice trailed off, liquid began to form a glossy shield over his eyes. He tried to blink back the tears but one slowly fell down his face. “She’s dead, Eiji.”

Eiji’s face went pale. His vocal cords tangled with each other as he tried to comfort Ash through the shock. 

He continued to talk, his voice rising ever so slightly as the memories came back to him, “She didn’t even have a name, he just picked up her body and threw her against the wall like she was a fuckin’ baseball.” Tears kept streaming down his face as his arms convulsed, his wrists shaking out of his control. “Then he started hitting me, so I ran, and I didn’t know where to go so i went to Shorter’s house, but they were all asleep. But then I remembered you talking about being next-door neighbors so,” He took a deep breath. “I came here.”

Eiji's voice was caught in his throat, his eyes wide in disbelief. All he could do was wrap his arms around Ash, carefully avoiding the bruises on his arms and back. “I’m glad you're safe,” he whispered into Ash’s neck, planting a soft kiss onto his skin.

He pulled away, going back to working on Ash’s injuries. While he was putting a bandaid onto a large cut that went across Ash’s forehead and into his hairline, Ash pulled him in for a kiss.

He didn’t really get a chance to resist, nor did he want to, so instead he melted into Ash’s embrace. They stood for a moment, only them two in the silence and darkness of the house. Eiji took the moment where they both went up for air to ask with a childish giggle, “What are you doing?” 

Ash laughed for a second as well. “I said i wanted to kiss you again.”

The boys fell back into their rhythm, drifting the weight of both of them back and forth on their legs.

“Eiji? What are you doing?” a small voice said from the top of the stairs.

Eiji pulled himself off Ash, and peaked around the blonde’s head to see Michael, the young son of Max and Jessica. He was no older than 6.

“Michael-” Eiji said, stepping around Ash and going halfway up the staircase to meet him. “What are you doing? It's late, why aren’t you in bed?”

“I heard you in here and it sounded like crying, you sounded sad.” Michael said while pronouncing his r’s like w’s.

“My friend just got hurt ok? He needed my help.” Eiji took Michael’s hand, and motioned for Ash to trail behind them. “Let's get you back in bed ok?”

Eiji led Michael back to his room, helping him get into bed and making sure he was ok. He left the room, quietly closing the door behind him. Ash was waiting outside the door leaning against the wall with his arms crossed.

“So, do you want to stay here for the night? Or do you want me to call someone for you?” Eiji asked quietly.

Ash responded in a small voice. “Can i stay here?”

“Of course, man.”

Eiji led Ash to his bedroom, lending him a spare pair of pajamas. While he offered to sleep on the floor, Ash insisted that they could split the bed. As they laid next to each other, each curled up on their respective sides, Eiji still had a question on his mind.

“So, Ash,” He began. “I still was wondering what that question you asked me meant.”

_ What team do you swing for? _

Ash snorted. “Do you really care that much?” Eiji sprung up, turned to look at Ash, “Yes, I do. Now spill!” 

Ash rolled over to face Eiji, “That phrase is asking who do you like. Boys or Girls.”

Eiji’s face lit up. All the stars aligned in his brain as the final piece of the puzzle was slid into place. Then he realized something. “Wait… so you were flirting with me?” He said.

“Of course i was!” Ash said dumbfounded. “I thought it was obvious!”

They both laughed at their collective misunderstanding. 

“Well if you don’t mind me asking,” Ash said. “What’s the answer to that question?”

Eiji sat back for a moment. He guessed he had never put much thought into it. “I don’t know.” he said. “I’ve never really liked anyone aside from you. So, I guess I swing for guys.”

Ash nodded.

“What about you?” Eiji asked.

“I'm kinda in the middle.” Ash said. “I’ve had crushes on guys and girls.” he laughed to himself. “Would you believe me if I told you i had a crush on Shorter for a month?” 

Eiji laughed, “Really? Of all people you choose the smoker with bad hair.”

Ash put up a front of mock offense before laughing it off with Eiji. “You’re way better anyways.” He said.

“So, are we dating then?” Eiji asked, his voice creaking slightly.

Ash thought for a moment, “I mean, if you want to..” he said, clearly not trying to force Eiji into anything.

“I guess we're dating then.” Eiji said, laying back down. “See you in the morning, new boyfriend.” He rolled over and closed his eyes, drifting to sleep, Ash curled up on the other side of the bed, their backs and legs ever-so-slightly grazing at one another. They dreamed of soft colored skies and open fields with no one but them for miles, with adorable animals creeping through the tall grass.

_ I guess we're dating then. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> boys in love :]]
> 
> also: my chapter updates make be coming slower than they did in the past, i’m kinda slumped with schoolwork rn, hope you are all understanding!


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